To be performed by San Francisco Ballet:
Nov. 28-30
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I never danced the role of the doomed Giselle but I encountered it at an early age when a film of the Bolshoi's Giselle came through town. My mother took my two sisters and myself. Seeing the ballet so large up on screen made quite an impression on me. Keep in mind, in a Midwestern town during the '50s, there were not very many opportunities for exposure to the arts. A touring ballet company would visit perhaps once a year. To see Giselle produced with grandeur in this larger than life way fed my imagination.

Giselle is probably the oldest ballet that remains largely intact and untouched by later choreographers since its first production in 1841. Ballets in those days were usually about a romantic ideal and interspersed with a healthy dose of magic and spirits. Romantic ballet is very much about seeing who you are and wishing for something entirely different—and that requires magic and a character who can make that magic happen. Because of its legacy, Giselle holds a revered place in the canon of dance and often is an introduction for young and aspiring dancers into the realm of ballet.

To be performed by San Francisco Ballet:
Nov. 25 & 26
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During Mr. Balanchine's Broadway and Hollywood days in the late '30s he managed to save $500 and commissioned Paul Hindemith, at the time in exile and teaching composition at Yale, to compose the music. What he received was 30 minutes of stunning music for a string orchestra and piano in the form of a theme with four extended variations. The composition originally had a different name and scenario, but what Balanchine eventually called The Four Temperaments was something entirely ahead of its day.

The title is based on the Greek belief that the body could be cured by effecting its four humors, or temperaments: Melancholic, Sanguinic, Phlegmatic and Choleric. However, this idea was only a departure point for the piece. It was not meant to be a deep exploration of the humors and the original cumbersome costumes were quickly discarded for a more "stripped down" style. Mr. B. did not want the audience thinking, "Oh, so that's what melancholy looks like." With The Four Temperaments he could leave behind the entire idea that ballet has to have a narrative and focus on the pure emotion through the dance itself.

Occasionally, I still hear people say that they don't go to the ballet because they don't know what to see. But you don't HAVE to see anything. You just see what you see. Let your mind form its own connections and interpretations, which can be different with each viewing. This idea can act as a canvas for the audience's emotions.

To be danced by The Joffrey Ballet:
Dec. 11-14
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Of course there are many different Nutcracker productions in many cities, but the constant element is Tchaikovsky's enchanting music. In some ways this piece is overexposed and underappreciated. Everyone has heard the music, but when you REALLY listen, it is full of whimsy, passion and complexity.

As a dancer, I found the music provided seemingly limitless ways to dance. The Nutcracker exists today as a holiday tradition, and it has a power and place in that role. However, I don't see any reason that it necessarily has to be performed around Christmas. In fact, Mr. B. scheduled The Nutcracker once in the middle of summer in Saratoga Springs, New York. It was refreshing to put everyone in a winter state of mind on a hot day.

I had a chance when I was eight to play the role of the well-behaved Clara in the second act of a touring Ballet Russe production. The role didn't entail much. In fact, no dancing at all. My sole responsibility was to sit on a red velvet bench on the side of the stage and clap politely after each divertissement. Naturally, being a budding performer, I found a unique way to applaud each time. I really got into the role and felt I was contributing to the enjoyment of the performance. Needless to say, they had a little blond girl in every town they played, but this was my night, and it ignited my dreams.